3/27. Comcast and BitTorrent announced that "they will undertake a
collaborative effort with one another and with the broader Internet and ISP
community to more effectively address issues associated with rich media content
and network capacity management." See, Comcast
release and substantially identical BitTorrent
release.

Also, the two companies stated that there is no need for government intervention. The FCC
is currently considering a request for intervention. On November 1, 2007, the
Free Press (FP) and
Public Knowledge (PK) filed with the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) a
document [48
pages in PDF] captioned "Formal Complaint of Free Press and Public Knowledge Against
Comcast Corporation For Secretly Degrading Peer-to-Peer Applications".

The complaint alleges that Comcast is "degrading peer-to-peer protocols" by
inserting forged reset packets into communications between peers in peer to peer (P2P)
communications that terminate those communications. This, the complaint alleges, interferes
with Comcast's subscribers use of applications like BitTorrent. See,
story titled
"Free Press Files Complaint with FCC Alleging that Comcast Is Violating 2005 Policy
Statement" in TLJ Daily
E-Mail Alert No. 1,669, November 5, 2007.

The releases of Comcast and BitTorrent state that Comcast "will migrate by
year-end 2008 to a capacity management technique that is protocol agnostic".

The releases continue that "In turn, BitTorrent acknowledged the need of ISPs
to manage their networks, especially during times of peak congestion."

Also, "BitTorrent and Comcast have also agreed to work with other ISPs, other
technology companies, and the Internet Engineering Task Force, to explore and develop a new
distribution architecture for the efficient delivery of rich media content."

Finally, the releases state that "Both BitTorrent and Comcast expressed the
view that these technical issues can be worked out through private business
discussions without the need for government intervention."

The releases do not disclosure whether or not Comcast and BitTorrent have
entered into any contract regarding this topic.

All five Commissioners released statements in which they expressed pleasure
in the just announced accord. However, they differed as to how the FCC should
now proceed. McDowell made the strongest statement against government
intervention. Tate suggested opposition to government intervention. Martin and
Adelstein did not express an opinion. Copps argued for a continuing FCC role.

Chairman Kevin Martin wrote in a
statement [PDF] that "I am pleased that Comcast has reversed course and
agreed that it is not a reasonable network management practice to arbitrarily
block certain applications on its network. I also commend the company for
admitting publicly that it was engaging in the practice and now engaging in a
dialog with BitTorrent."

He added that "I am concerned, though, that Comcast has not made clear when
they will stop this discriminatory practice." However, he expressed no opinion
as to whether the FCC should adopt network management practice rules.

Commissioner Deborah Tate wrote in a
statement
[PDF] that "I have consistently favored competition and market forces rather
than government regulation across all platforms and especially in this dynamic,
highly-technical marketplace." She added that "I look forward to even more
collaborative, industry-based solutions, which are often the most effective and
efficient means of resolving complex, technical network disputes."

Commissioner Robert McDowell wrote in a
statement that "it is precisely this kind of private sector solution that
has been the bedrock of Internet governance since its inception. Government
mandates cannot possibly contemplate the myriad complexities and nuances of the
Internet market place. The private sector is the best forum to resolve such
disputes. Today's announcement obviates the need for any further government
intrusion into this matter."

Commissioner Michael Copps wrote in a
statement that "Today’s announcement confirms my belief that the FCC needs
to play a proactive role in preserving the Internet as a vibrant place for
democratic values, innovation and economic growth. If it had not been for the
FCC’s attention to this issue earlier this year, we would not be having the
conversation that we are having now among network operators, edge content
providers, consumers and government about the best way to implement reasonable
network management."

And, he wrote that "the FCC can come up with clear rules".

Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein wrote in a
statement that "We will need to learn more details about the recent
agreement between BitTorrent and Comcast, but it is encouraging that broadband
providers are listening to the chorus of consumer calls for open and neutral
broadband Internet access."

FCC Releases DBS HD Carry One Carry All
Order

3/27. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
released the
text [34 pages in PDF] of its Second Report and Order, Memorandum Opinion, and Second
Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of
Carriage of Digital Television Broadcast Signals: Amendment to Part 76 of the Commission’s
Rules; Implementation of the Satellite Home Viewer Improvement Act of 1999: Local Broadcast
Signal Carriage Issues and Retransmission Consent Issues".

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin explained
in his
statement [PDF] associated with this order that "Last fall, the Commission adopted
an order that guarantees that all cable customers will be able to watch all
broadcast stations after the digital transition. Specifically, the Commission
took action to ensure cable operators continue to make signals of all broadcast
stations viewable after the transition, as the statute requires. As a result, we
significantly reduced the number of Americans potentially needing a converter
box to watch broadcast stations post-transition. Thus, the Commission made sure
the 34 million households that subscribe to analog cable will be able to
continue to watch broadcast television after the transition as they did the day
before. This allowed the Commission to focus its energies on assisting the over
14 million households that rely exclusively on over-the-air signals."

See, story titled "FCC Adopts R&O and Further NPRM Regarding Cable Carriage
of Digital Broadcast TV Signals" in
TLJ Daily E-Mail
Alert No. 1,640, September 17, 2007. The FCC adopted that item on September
11, 2007, and released the
text [68 pages in PDF] on November 30, 2007. That item is FCC 07-170 in CS
Docket No. 98-120.

Martin continued, "Today, the Commission adopts an order that will
enable satellite subscribers to receive digital broadcast signals, as well."

This item states that "we amend the rules to require satellite carriers to carry
digital-only stations upon request in markets in which they are providing any local-into-local
service pursuant to the statutory copyright license, and to require carriage of all high
definition (``HD´´) signals in a market in which any station’s signals are carried in
HD." (Footnote omitted.)

It continues that "In recognition of the capacity and technological constraints
faced by satellite carriers, the latter requirement will be phased-in over a four-year period.
These decisions are consistent with Section 338 of the Act’s instructions that the Commission
implement comparable, rather than identical, carriage rules between cable and direct broadcast
satellite (``DBS´´), and is supported by the record in this proceeding."

The Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) portion of this item seeks comment on
the application of the statutory requirement for nondiscriminatory treatment in carriage of
standard definition (SD) and HD signals.

FCC Commissioner Michael Copps
supported this order, but lamented. He wrote in his
statement
[PDF] that "This item acts on a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking pending since
2001. In January 2003, Echostar briefed the FCC in detail about the potential technical
impact of a local HD carriage requirement; DirecTV made a similar presentation to the FCC
in October 2004. Had we taken proactive steps then, we might find ourselves in a very
different factual circumstance than we find ourselves today. DirecTV, for instance, is
scheduled to launch its D-11 satellite this week and its D-12 satellite in 2009. Some of
this new capacity will be used for national HD service and some will provide local HD
service via spot beams. The spot beams for these satellites have all been designed and
cannot now be changed. Thus, DirecTV asserts -- and Echostar makes a similar case -- that
it must design, build and launch at least one additional satellite in order to comply with
today’s HD mandate -- hence the four-year timetable."

"Had we acted earlier, could DirecTV and Echostar have designed their satellites
differently in order to permit full local HD carriage before 2013? We may never know. One
thing we do know is that, by waiting to act, we have rendered the question moot",
said Copps.

The FCC adopted this on March 19, 2008. This item is FCC 08-86 in CS Docket No. 00-96.

FCC Order Cites Wikipedia

3/27. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
released the
text [34
pages in PDF] of an order, opinion, and notice of proposed rulemaking that, among other
things, orders direct broadcast satellite (DBS) operators to carry each station in a local
market on the same terms, including carriage of high definition (HD) signals in HD format,
if any broadcaster in the same market is carried in HD. See, related story in this issue
titled "FCC Releases DBS HD Carry One Carry All Order".

This order, at footnote 30, cites as an authority a
web page
in the Wikipedia web site titled "Quadrature amplitude modulation", which is
also known as QAM.

There are justifications for decision makers to reasonably base their decisions upon
inherently unreliable, anonymous, out of proceeding and/or ex parte statements. However,
these justifications usually relate to circumstances in which the statement is not relied
upon for the truth of the matters asserted therein. Yet, the FCC order cited the Wikipedia
QAM article as authority for the truth of the matters asserted therein.

Footnote 30. The FCC order states, at paragraph 9, that "As cable providers
transition from providing analog signals to providing digital standard definition and high
definition signals, they realize significant benefits in spectrum efficiency. Where a cable
operator previously carried a single analog standard stream, post-transition they potentially
carry ten digital standard definition streams, two high definition streams, or some
combination of standard and high definition streams."

This is supported with footnote 30.
This footnote states, in full, as follows: "Utilizing analog carriage of
standard definition signals, a single programming stream consumes 6 MHz of a
cable operator’s bandwidth. Using MPEG 2 compression, a standard definition
program stream is generally compressed to a bitrate of approximately 4 Mbps
(million bits per second). Using MPEG 2 compression, a high definition program
stream is generally compressed to a bitrate of approximately 12 to 15 Mbps. The
use of MPEG 4 compression would provide similar quality program streams at a
lower bitrate, however, as MPEG4 is not yet widespread, generalizing on the use
of MPEG 2 provides a reasonable, conservative estimate. Cable operators
generally employ either 64 QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation) or 256 QAM
encoding for digital service, which in 6 MHz provides either 28 Mbps or 38 Mbps
(64 and 256 QAM respectively). Therefore, using 64 QAM, a cable operator could
reasonably substitute one HD and several SD for a single analog SD program
stream. See Cisco System, Bandwidth Optimization, available at
http://www.scientificatlanta.com/ products/customers/
prod_bbaccess_Bandwidth_Mgmt-pg2.htm (visited Feb. 29, 2008). See also Wikipedia,
Quadrature Amplitude Modulation, available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Quadrature_amplitude_modulation (visited Feb. 29, 2008)."

A search of the FCC's comments database reveals that neither Cisco nor Wikipedia
filed comments with the FCC in Docket No. 00-96.

Prior FCC Consideration of Wikipedia. The FCC does not have a history of
citing and relying upon Wikipedia articles in rulemakings, adjudications, or
other administrative processes.

On October 19, 2007, the FCC's Media Bureau released a
Memorandum Opinion and Order (MO&O) in an obscure broadcast TV license
renewal proceeding. This item is DA 07-4310. The MB denied a petition to deny
the renewal. (The Media Bureau also handled the DBS order released on March 27, 2008.)

In the license renewal proceeding the FCC declined to consider a citation to a
Wikipedia article in the petition to deny.

The MO&O states that "news reports, whether from newspapers or the Internet,
and Wikipedia citations are not in any way statements supported by affidavits made by
individuals with personal knowledge of the facts alleged. Wikipedia, in particular, states
on its site that it ``cannot guarantee the validity of the information found here.´´
Therefore, we will not consider those materials in reaching our decision here."

Wikipedia. Wikipedia operates a free access web site that it describes
as a "free encyclopedia". It is based upon material submitted by largely
anonymous and unscreened persons.

Wikipedia states that "Visitors do not need specialized qualifications to
contribute". It states that "articles can be edited by anyone with access to the
Internet, simply by clicking the edit this page link".

Wikipedia further states that its articles "may contain false or debatable
information", that "Allowing anyone to edit Wikipedia means that it is more
easily vandalized or susceptible to unchecked information", and that "Wikipedia's
coverage of subjects is patchy, based on the whims of its volunteer contributors".

Wikipedia further states that "Many contributors do not yet comply fully with
key policies, or may add information without citable sources" and that "articles
and subject areas sometimes suffer from significant omissions".

Wikipedia also publishes numerous warnings. For example, "Please be advised that
nothing found here has necessarily been reviewed by people with the expertise required to
provide you with complete, accurate or reliable information."

And there is this. "Wikipedia cannot guarantee the validity of the
information found here. The content of any given article may recently have been
changed, vandalized or altered by someone whose opinion does not correspond with
the state of knowledge in the relevant fields."

It also provides this warning: "all information read here is without any
implied warranty of fitness for any purpose or use whatsoever".

In addition to the reliability of Wikipedia articles, there is the matter of
its anonymity. Anyone can edit an article without disclosing their identity,
qualifications, or affiliations. Wikipedia identifies many editors only by the
internet protocol (IP) that they used to access the Wikipedia web site.

Wikipedia does enable users to obtain a list of other Wikipedia articles edited by the
user of that IP number. However, IP numbers might be assigned by an ISP solely for one
internet session, and then continuously reassigned to other subscribers of that ISP.

Notably, for the QAM article cited by the FCC order, many of the editors are
identified only by an IP number, and there are not other articles associated
with that number. Readers of the QAM article cannot know who these
authors are, who they represent, or what qualifications they might have.

Some Wikipedia contributors do disclose their identities. Some do not
disclose identities, but provide some information about themselves. For example,
for the QAM article relied upon by the FCC, one of the anonymous contributors
revealed that he "loves cake" and "is an agnostic".

Administrative Process. If the FCC were to develop a pattern of relying upon
Wikipedia articles in rulemakings, adjudications, or other administrative processes, this
might then have several consequences, in addition to the questions of reliability addressed
above.

For example, regulated entities and the groups that represent them, that are
well organized to influence political processes, might engage in anonymous, and
self-interested efforts to create and edit the articles that might be relied upon by the FCC's
decision makers. Also, since the FCC is essentially an agency of lawyers, rather
than engineers, technologists, scientists and other experts in the regulated
fields, the FCC is particularly dependent on outside information.

This might further undermine the accuracy of the articles relied upon by the
FCC. It might also diminish the transparency of the FCC's decision making processes.

Under this general theory, the FCC may hold hearings at which it receives testimony,
provided that there is notice, and that they are open. The FCC must accept and
consider written filings by interested parties. These filings must be a matter of public
record, and subject to written rebuttals, which the FCC must accept and consider. The FCC
must make certain decisions based upon items in its record. These decisions must be
reduced to writing and made accessible to the public.

At least, this is the theory.

If the FCC were to regularly make decisions in reliance upon
Wikipedia articles, which may in turn reflect the views of organized interests
in FCC proceedings, these items would not be a part of the record, and other
parties may not have adequate notice and opportunity to review and rebut them.

The articles may not only be unreliable and anonymous, they might also be a
form of undisclosed ex parte communication.

This might unfairly prejudice certain parties. It might also deprive the FCC of the
benefit of the rebuttal information that these parties might have provided in a more
transparent process, and hence, decrease the quality of FCC's decisions.

But then, the FCC and regulated entities have developed many
mechanisms for reducing the transparency of the FCC's activities and operations.
Organized interests already have numerous strategies for creating and exploiting
for their benefit information asymmetries in regulatory proceedings.
Manipulation of Wikipedia content might represent at most a minor additional
diminution of agency transparency.

Further Reading. On February 5, 2007,
Daniel Solove, a law
professor at George Washington University Law School, published an
article titled "When Is It Appropriate to Cite to Wikipedia?"

In 2006, Roy Rosenzweig, a law professor at George Mason University, wrote an
article titled "Can
History be Open Source? Wikipedia and the Future of the Past".

On December 4, 2005, the New York Times published an
article
by Katharine Seelye titled "Snared in the Web of a Wikipedia Liar".

About Tech Law Journal

Tech Law Journal publishes a free access web site and
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information page.

3/27. Various parties commented on Comcast's and BitTorrent's announcement on March 27,
2008, that they have reached an accord on broadband network management practices.

Dan Glickman, head of the Motion Picture Association of
America (MPAA), stated in a release that this "agreement between BitTorrent and
Comcast is exactly the kind of industry cooperation that is urgently needed to address the
problem of online piracy. Movie and music theft on digital networks creates network
congestion and impedes efforts by network operators, technology companies and content
providers to deliver new, legal entertainment choices to consumers."

He added that "The MPAA has worked closely with technology companies and Internet
service providers for some time on a range of issues in which we have a shared interest,
particularly focusing on the fight to eliminate online copyright theft. By continuing
to work together toward solutions we can help ensure the further growth of a legitimate
digital consumer content marketplace."

Randolph May, head of the Free State
Foundation, and once an Associate General Counsel at the FCC, stated in a release that
this announcement "is welcome news".

He continued that "This should be a strong signal to the FCC
that it should refrain from embroiling itself in highly technical network
management issues that are much better left to the private sector parties to
resolve. This agreement shows there are incentives on all sides of the
‘two-sided’ or ‘multi-sided’ market to work cooperatively to achieve solutions
that keep the Internet working smoothly."

Similarly, Tom Lenard of iGrowthGlobal,
stated in a release that this Comcast/BitTorrent announcement "is yet additional
evidence that that the broadband market is working in the interest of consumers.
All networks need to be managed in some way, and the government should stay out
of these highly technical issues in the absence of compelling evidence that
government involvement will yield benefits for consumers. I am unaware that such
evidence exists. Indeed, government involvement in these dynamic markets in the
name of ``network neutrality´´ is likely to adversely affect the development of
broadband networks and harm consumers."

iGrowthGlobal lists its "sponsors" as
AT&T, Cisco, Verizon, and Yahoo.

In contrast, Gigi Sohn, head of the
Public Knowledge (PK), stated in a release that "Over the
last couple of weeks, we have seen announcements by Verizon and now Comcast that
the companies are working to make peer-to-peer technologies work more smoothly.
We applaud industry discussions and collaborations, but neither of these
developments has any bearing on the complaint and petitions pending" before the
FCC. "They are irrelevant."

She continued that "The FCC has the responsibility to protect the rights of
consumers against discriminatory network management practices", and that
Any arrangements made now would not cover any future developments in blocking,
throttling or filtering that any other companies may use." Hence, the FCC
"should continue to reinforce its principles of Internet access".

See also, the February 13, 2007,
comments [100 pages in PDF] and February 29, 2007,
reply comments [62 pages in PDF] submitted to the FCC by the PK, Free Press, Media
Access Project, Consumer Federation of America, Consumers Union, New America
Foundation and Participatory Culture Foundation.

Also, Markham Erickson, of the Open Internet Coalition, stated in a release that this is
"welcome news", but that "the FCC still needs to reinforce these efforts by
establishing the basic rules of the road for BitTorrent users and all Internet consumers by
defining permissible broadband network management practices".

Erickson argued that "Time and time again, when the telcos and cable
companies engage in discriminatory behavior against certain types of speech and
content -- as we've seen with AT&T, Verizon, and most recently with Comcast -- a
familiar pattern emerges. First, a spotlight gets focused on the bad behavior.
Then, when exposed, the companies state such action is within their power as
network operators. After that, the FCC and Congress focus on these
discriminatory acts, and finally, the companies do a U-turn and apologize. While
it’s always a positive step when these companies admit the error of their ways,
it's a bad way to run the Internet."

"As long as network operators can define, on their own terms, what applications can
and cannot be used on the Internet, developers and investors face uncertainty about whether
the next big thing will be allowed to have full functionality over broadband operators. We
need the FCC to continue to examine this issue, and clearly and completely define proper
network practices to foster an open and non-discriminatory Internet for both consumers and
innovators", said Erickson.

There is also a related
Petition for Rulemaking [20 pages in PDF] filed by Vuze, Inc. on November
14, 2007, that also goes to broadband network management practices.

Comments submitted to the FCC regarding Comcast and BitTorrent, and other
requests for FCC regulation of network management practices, can be found at the
FCC's Search for
Filed Comments web page under proceeding number 07-52.

2:00 PM. Alan Holmer (Special Envoy for China and
the Strategic Economic Dialogue), will hold a pen and pad briefing on Henry Paulson's
(Secretary of the Treasury) trip to the People's Republic of China on April 2-3. See,
notice. Location: Department of
the Treasury, Media Room (4121), 1500 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

Day three of a three day conference of the ABA Section of Antitrust Law. See,
conference web site and
brochure [3 MB in PDF]. Locations: JW Marriott Hotel and National Press Club.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to
its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding cable and broadcast
attribution rules. The FCC adopted this item on December 18, 2007, and released the
text on February 11, 2008. It is FCC 07-219 in MM Docket No. 92-264. See,
notice in the Federal Register, February 27, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 39, at
Pages 10411-10415.

Monday, March 31

The House will return from its two week March recess. Votes will be
postponed at least until 6:30 PM. See, Rep. Hoyer's
2008
calendar [4.25 MB PDF].

The Senate will return from its March recess. See, Senate
2008 calendar.

TIME? The Information Technology Association of
America (ITAA) will host an event titled "Beyond the Beltway 2008:
State & Local Government IT Market Watch". See,
notice. For more information,
contact Michael Kerr at mkerr at itaa dot org or 703-284-5324. Location: The Ritz-Carlton,
Tysons Corner, VA.

The Office of the US Trade
Representative (OUSTR) is scheduled to conclude it review of
compliance with telecommunications trade agreements. See,
notice in the Federal Register, November 19, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 222, at
Pages 65109-65111.

Effective date of the Federal
Communications Commission's (FCC) final rule establishing cable horizontal and
vertical ownership limits. See, FCC's Fourth Report and Order adopted December 18,
2007, and released on February 11, 2008. It is FCC 07-219 in MM Docket No. 92-264. See also,
notice in the Federal Register, February 29, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 41, at
Pages 11048-11050.

Effective date of the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) REAL ID Act regulations. The DHS released its REAL ID
Act rules on January 11, 2008. The DHS published its
notice in the Federal Register announcing, describing, and reciting these rules on
January 29, 2008. See, Federal Register, January 29, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 19, at Pages
5271-5340. See also, story titled "DHS Releases REAL ID Regulations" in
TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No.
1,699, January 14, 2008.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to
its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding leased commercial access. The
FCC adopted this NPRM on November 27, 2007, and released the text on February 1, 2008.
This NPRM is FCC 07-208 in MB Docket No. 07-42. See, story titled "FCC Adopts R&O a
nd FNPRM Regarding Commercial Leased Access" in
TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No.
1,680, November 30, 2007. See also,
notice in the Federal Register, February 28, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 40, Pages
10732-10738.

Deadline to submit comments to the
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding the proposed
establishment of an accreditation program for laboratories that perform biometric
testing including interoperability, performance, and conformance using internationally
recognized standards developed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), NIST,
and by the International Committee for Information Technology Standards (INCITES). See,
notice in the Federal Register, February 29, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 41, at
Page 11093.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The
House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on
Research and Science Education will hold a hearing titled "International Science
and Technology Cooperation". The witnesses will be John Marburger (Director of
the Office of Science and Technology Policy), Arden Bement (Director of the National
Science Foundation), Nina Fedoroff (Department of State), Jeff Miotke (Department of
State), and Michael O’Brien (NASA). Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

EXTENDED TO APRIL 17.Deadline to submit initial comments to the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to it Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
(NPRM) regarding the Recommended Decision of the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal
Service, released on November 20, 2007, regarding comprehensive reform of high cost
universal service taxes and subsidies. The FCC adopted this NPRM on January 15, 2008,
and released the text on January 29, 2008. It is FCC 08-02 in WC Docket No. 05-337 and CC
Docket No. 96-45. See, original
notice in the Federal Register, March 4, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 43, at Pages
11587-11591. See also,
notice [PDF] of extension (DA 08-674).

EXTENDED TO APRIL 17.Deadline to submit initial comments to the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to it Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the use of reverse auctions to determine
the amount of high cost universal service subsidies provided to
eligible telecommunications carriers serving rural, insular, and high cost
areas. The FCC adopted this NPRM on January 9, 2008, and released the text on
January 29, 2008. It is FCC 08-05 in WC Docket No. 05-337 and CC Docket No.
96-45. See, original
notice in the Federal Register, March 4, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 43, at Pages
11591-11602. See also,
notice [PDF] of extension (DA 08-674).

EXTENDED TO APRIL 17.Deadline to submit initial comments to the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to it Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the FCC's rules governing the amount of
high cost universal service subsidies provided to competitive eligible
telecommunications carriers (ETCs). This NPRM also tentatively concludes that
the FCC should eliminate the existing identical support rule, which is also
known as the equal support rule. The FCC adopted this NPRM on January 9, 2008,
and released the text on January 29, 2008. It is FCC 08-04 in WC Docket No.
05-337 and CC Docket No. 96-45. See, original
notice in the Federal Register, March 4, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 43, at Pages
11580-11587. See also,
notice [PDF] of extension (DA 08-674).